1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an occlusal plane orientation guide adapted for use during adjustment of a denture to insure proper alignment of the denture relative to the patient's cranial anatomy.
2. Prior Art
The occlusal plane of artificial dentures must bear a particular relationship to the cranial anatomy of the wearer to insure their proper function and appearance. This orientation is generally expressed in terms of the position of an imaginary occlusal plane of the dentures which theoretically touches the incisal edges of the incisors and tips of the occluding surfaces of the posterior teeth. This is not a plane in the true sense of the word, in some cases, but may represent the mean of the curvature of this surface. It is generally desirable that this plane extend parallel to a line drawn from the tragus of the ear to the ala of the nose to insure proper function and appearance of the dentures. The occlusal plane should additionally extend parallel to the interpupillary line. If the occlusal plane as it pertains to the lower denture is raised or lowered too much, the patient may experience difficulty in removing the food from the occlusal table, and therefore tend to dislodge the lower denture, or bite the lateral borders of the tongue.
A popular device for use in establishing proper orientation of the occlusal plane has consisted of a thin, flat plate having a central curved bite piece and a pair of laterally and distally extending wings projecting from the proximal end of the bite piece and adapted to overline the exteriors of the opposite buccinator muscle complexes (cheeks) of the patient. During fitting of the denture the bite piece is oriented on the maxillary denture so that the plate is on the occlusal plane and the wax denture bite block is adjusted so that the wings of the plate extend parallel to the ala-tragus line. This is usually done by either drawing the ala-tragus line on the patient's face using a straight edge and a grease pencil or some similar technique. This alignment process is awkward and time consuming and frequently results in a misalignment of the denture. It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved occlusal plane orienter which simplifies the process of achieving alignment of the dentures with the cranial anatomy and insures proper alignment.